MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Prosecutors have revealed that they offered plea deals to three former Minneapolis police officers charged with aiding and abetting the murder of George Floyd, but say the defendants rejected them.
Judge Peter Cahill held a Monday evening hearing mostly to consider whether he has the authority to allow live video coverage of the upcoming trial set for former Officers Tou Thao, Thomas Lane and J. Alexander Kueng.
Lead prosecutor Matthew Frank did not disclose details of the plea offers in open court. But he says they were identical and were made in March after a jury convicted the three in a separate trial in February on federal civil rights charges stemming from Floyd’s death.
In the federal case, the former officers were found guilty of depriving Floyd of his right to medical care when fellow Officer Derek Chauvin pressed his knee into Floyd's neck for 9 1/2 minutes.
Chauvin was found guilty on state murder charges. He pleaded guilty in the federal civil rights case.
